www.sakshieducation.

com CHAPTER 11

ENVIRONMENTAL CHEMISTRY
UNIT : 1
1. 2. 3. 4. Definition of terms : Air, water and soil pollutions Oxides of carbon, Carbon monoxide, CO Oxides of nitrogen and sulphur and chlorofluro carbons Chemical reactions in atmosphere , smogs major atmospheric pollutants and acid rain

VERY SHORT ANSWER QUESTIONS : 1. A. Define pollutant and contaminant ? A substance which is already present in nature but grows in Quantity due to human activity and adversely effects the environment is called pollutant Ex : CO2, SO2.etc A substance which is not present in nature, but produced by human activity and has adverse effect on environment is called contaminant Ex : MIC (methyl Isocyanate) 2. A. Define Receptor, sink and speciation? The medium which is affected by the pollutant is called receptor The medium which reacts with pollutants is called sink. The chemical form of the pollutants is known as speciation. 3. A. Why is environment getting polluted? The environment is getting polluted due to increase in population, decrease in natural resources, industrialisation, urbanisation and deforestation. 4. A. 5. A. Name the environmental segments ? Atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere, biosphere are the segments of environment. Name any four pollutants ? Sulphur dioxide - SO2 Carbon dioxide - CO2 Mercury Hg Carbon Monoxide CO 6. A. Why is the temperature of the earth increasing ?

CO2 and water vapour absorb I.R. radiations coming from the earth and partly reflected it back to
the earths surface. Due to this the temperature of the earth increases. Name any four green house gases? Carbon dioxide CO2 Ozone-O3 www.sakshieducation.com

7. A.

www.sakshieducation.com Nitric Oxide NO Chlorofluoro Carbons CFC. 8. A. Acid rains are harmful. Why ? Acid rains are harmful, because 1) The life of old buildings and historical monuments are considerably reduced 2) Qualitiyof drinking water will be decreased. 2) It reduces the fertility of soil 9. A. What are the causes of acid rains ? Why ? The substances which cause acid rain are oxides of Nitrogen sulphur ( SO2 , SO3 ) Because these oxides dissolve in rain water and come down to earth as HNO3 and H 2 SO4 . It is called acid rain.

( NO, NO2 , N 2O5 )

and oxides of

N 2O5 + H 2O 2 HNO3
SO3 + H 2O H 2 SO4
10. A. What happens when CO is increased in the air ? When carbon monoxide is increased in the air, it combines with haemoglobin of blood to form carboxyl haemoglobin. This results in loss of vision, headache, fatigue, unconsciousness, some times even death. 11. A. How is water polluted ? Water is polluted due to the following aspects : 1) Increase of the population leads to more sewage water 2) Increase of industries leads to more waste substances 3) Increase of agricultural product leads to more use of pesticides and fertilizers 12. A. Name some organic pollutants ? Malathion, DDT, Carboxyl, chloro phenoxy group of compounds, phenyl mercury acetate, PAN, PBN.. etc 13. A. What harm is caused in plants due to sulphur dioxide.

SO2 bleaches the green colour of leaf apexes in plants to yellow colour, this preventing it from
performing photosynthetic properly. What happens due to oil pollution in Sea ? The volatile substances become evaporated, but the non volatile substances remain in the sea water. They are absorbed by the sea weeds and taken by fish. They are carcinogenic and they also prevent photosynthetic of algae in the sea. www.sakshieducation.com

14. A.

15. A. 16. A.

www.sakshieducation.com Name the important sinks of CO2 ? Sea and Trees How is carbon monoxide released into the atmosphere ? It is released from the smoke emitted from automobiles like lorries, motor cars, buses, trains, etc, due to incomplete combustion of petrol and diesel. It is also released in the oxidation of methane

17. A.

What is Bio amplification? The process of increases in concentration of pollutants from lower animals to higher animals through food chains is called Bio-amplification.

18. A.

What are COD and BOD ? The amount of oxygen required to oxidize organic substances present in polluted water is called COD. The amount of oxygen used by the suitable micro organisms present in water during five days at 20C is called B.O.D.

19. A.

What is TLV ? How can we protect the environment ? The permissible level of a toxic pollutant without any adverse effect on a healthy industrial worker, working for 8 hours per day in a polluted atmosphere is called TLV. We can protect the environment by planting trees and protecting the forests. By keeping the environment clean and green.

20. A.

What happens when water is polluted ? Name one disease caused by water pollution ? When water is polluted 1) It gives bad odour 2) Uncontrolled growth of weeds in it 3) Not useful for drinking Polluted water leads to diseases like cholera, jaundice, typhoid and diarrhea

21. A.

What happens when fluorides are present in water ? If concentration of fluorides exceeds more than 3ppm in drinking water, it becomes harmful. The fluorides react with calcium present in the body to form CaF2

Ca + F2 CaF2
The colour of the teeth turns yellow. The bones become weak and the disease is called Fluorosis. 22. A. How do pollutants effect the aquatic life ? 1) Due to the presence of pollutants like cyanides, H 2 S , CO2 . pH of water varies and becomes toxic to aquatic animals 2) Over nutrition in ponds causes eutrophication and ultimately the ponds become dry 3) Due to the presence of pollutants the D.O decreases in the water and this effects the aquatic life www.sakshieducation.com

23. A.

www.sakshieducation.com Explain the Nalgonda defluoridation technique? In this method bleaching powder, lime and alum are added in the same order and the water is kept for some time. The fluoride ions are precipitated as calcium aluminium fluoride and is separated by filtration.

24. A.

How can we protect the environment from pollution ? 1) Use of Biotechnology 2) Research must be developed to avoid the formation of by products in the reaction 3) Use of non conventional fuels and energy systems like solar energy etc 4) Growth of population must be controlled 5) Growing forests and prevent the forest fires 6) Preventing the extinction of plants and animal species 7) Protecting and keeping the environment clean and green

SHORT ANSWER QUESTIONS : 1. How is soil pollution controlled by the following methods. 1) collection of wastes 2) disposal of wastes 3) recovery of resources 4) bioremediation A. 1) Wastes containing suspended matter in solid form but little polluting matter in solution e.g : China clay works, coal washeresis, etc 2) Wastes containing suspended solid matter and polluting matter in solution e.g : Tanneries, denses, etc 3) Wastes containing polluting substances mainly in solution e.g : Electroplating industry 2. A. Explain (a) Pollutants (b) Sink (c) Dissolved oxygen

a) Pollutant : A substance released into the environment due to natural or human activity and effects adversely the environment is called as pollutant e.g : SO2CO , lead, mercury, etc b) Sink : The medium which reacts with pollutants is called sink e.g : 1) Sea water is a big sink for CO2 2) Microorganisms which eat the dead animals or which convert the dried leaves and garbage into fertilizers c) Dissolved oxygen : The amount of oxygen present in water is called dissolved oxygen. The amount of oxygen required for the healthy growth of plants and animals in water is 4 6 mg litre . On the basis of the dissolved oxygen value, the extent of pollution is usually estimated. www.sakshieducation.com

3. A.

www.sakshieducation.com How do acid rains occur ? What are the effects of acid rains ? Acid rain: Oxides of nitrogen i.e. nitric oxide and nitrogen dioxide combine with oxygen and ozone to form higher oxides of nitrogen. These oxides ultimately dissolve in water to form nitric acid 1) NO + O3 NO2 + O2 2) NO + O3 NO3 + O2 ] 3) NO2 + NO3 N 2O5 4) N 2O5 + H 2O 2 HNO3 Sulphur dioxide reacts with oxygen and water to form sulphuric acid.

1 + H 2O SO2 + O2 SO3 H 2 SO4 2

The nitric acid and sulphuric acids dissolve in rain water and come down to earth as acid rain. This is more in industrial areas. Effect of acid rain: 1) Due to acid rain, the lifespan of buildings will be considerably reduced. The glossy nature of Taj Mahal is getting affected due to the action of acid rain on marble stones 2) Due to acid rain, the pH of the soil changes affecting its fertility. 4. A. What is the effect of carbon monoxide on human beings? Carbon monoxide (CO) effects human beings. In human beings, oxygen which is inhaled during respiration combines with haemoglobin of red blood corpuscles and forms oxyhaemoglobin. One oxyhaemoglobin molecule transfers oxygen to another haemoglobin molecule i.e., oxygen is transported through blood to every part of the body.

O2 Hb + CO CO Hb + O2
Oxyhaemoglobin Carboxyhaemoglobin

Level of CO in ppm %of CO-Hb formed present atmosphere 10 100 250 750 1000 in from O2-Hb 2% 15% 32% 60% 66%

Effect on the health of human beings Loss of vision Headache, fatigue Unconsciousness Death after a few hours Immediate death

www.sakshieducation.com

5.

www.sakshieducation.com Write about the inorganic pollutants. Inorganic pollutants 1) Salts, trace elements like copper, zinc, arsenic, etc metals coming out from Effect 1) Affects the human health and aquatic animals 2) Metals disturb the water system. Algae 2) Metals and complex compounds cannot grow properly. Such surroundings, decrease photosynthesis and increase air pollution directly 3) Cyanides, hydrogen nitrogen sulphides, dioxide and 3) pH of the water varies and becomes toxic to aquatic animals

chromium plating industry

Carbondioxide, sulphites 4) Algae

nutrients

Nutrients

like 4) Eutrophication of the pond causes excess growth of the algae and subsequently the ponds get dried up

Carbondioxide, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, nitrates, phosphates, sulphates and

micronutrients like boron, chlorine, copper, iron, manganese, vanadium, zinc, etc

compounds 5) Heavy metals like lead and mercury 5) Water becomes toxic 6) Water cannot be used for drinking 6) Fluorides present in water purposes, as bones and teeth of human beings get effected. Water becomes toxic

6. A.

Water pollution depends on the nature of industry. Give examples. 1) Metals coming out from chromium plating industry effects the human health and aquatic animals Due to heavy metals like lead and mercury, water becomes toxic, which effects the human health and aquatic animals 2) The waste water coming out from paper, pulp, leather, sugarcane and chemical industries degrade the presence of microorganisms. Due to this, dissolved oxygen value of water gets reduced, which affect the aquatic life (both plants and animals) 3) Water becomes over nutritious when organic substances from industry are thrown into the water resources like ponds and lakes. This type of nutritious lake or pond is called as eutrophic lake which causes excess growth of the algae and subsequently the ponds get dried up. 4) Wastage of organic pollutants coming from industries mix with water and are consumed by the fish and other aquatic life. It is propagated in the form of food chains from lower animals to higher www.sakshieducation.com

www.sakshieducation.com animals and human beings is called as bio amplification. Thus, it results in high B.P. and increase in irritation levels of human beings. 7. A. Pollution is increasing by deforestation. Justify. Due to cutting of forests, the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere gets increased. A 50% increase in CO2 level, increases the surface temperature of earth by 3C . If there is 1C increase in temperature, the following bad effects are predicted. 1) The ice caps of the polar region melt thereby increasing the level of the sea water by 90cm due to which many countries will get submerged 2) Due to global warming, the rate of evaporation of water from the seas, rivers, ponds will increase. This leads to ultimately rains, cyclones and hurricanes 3) A great effect on agriculture sector 8. A. What is the tolerable concentration of F ions in water ? What is the effect if it increases ? The tolerable concentration of F ions in drinking water is 3ppm. When it exceeds 3ppm, it cannot be used for drinking. The water contains excess of fluorides which reach with calcium present in the body (especially teeth and bones) to form calcium fluorides.

Ca + F2 CaF2
By this reaction, the colour of the teeth turns yellow and the bones becomes weak causing the disease fluorosis. 9. A. Explain the different regions of the atmosphere. Different regions of atmosphere are 1) Troposphere (0 11 km) 2) Stratosphere (11 50 km) 3) Mesosphere (50 85 km) 4) Thermosphere )85 50 km) These regions extend upto 500 km above the earth 1) Troposphere : It is the major portion of the atmosphere. It contains chemicals like

N 2 , O2 , CO2 , H 2O , etc
Use : Maintenance of heat balance 2) Stratosphere : In this region, mainly ozone layer is present. It absorbs the ultraviolet radiation coming from the sun and prevents harmful ultraviolet radiation from falling on the earth.
+ 3) Mesosphere : The chemicals present in this region are O2 , NO + . In this region, temperature

rises as we go up and reaches a maximum of 1473K. In this region, atmospheric gases especially oxygen undergoes ionization after the absorption of solar radiations. www.sakshieducation.com

10. A.

www.sakshieducation.com What is environmental pollution ? Environment is getting polluted by the following reasons 1) Due to increase in pollution, urbanization, deforestation, etc 2) Due to increase in industrialization and the natural resources have diminished 3) Due to increase in agricultural products like pesticides, fungicides, etc 4) Sewage from domestic, commercial, food processing and industrial effluents causes the decrease in dissolved oxygen by which the water is said to be polluted

. LONG ANSWER QUESTIONS : 1. A. Discuss soil pollution. Soil is polluted mainly from i) Agricultural practices, ii) Industrial wastes, iii) Urban wastes, iv) Chemical and mechanical pollutants, v) Mining vi) Soil sediments, vii) Radioactive pollutants and vii) Biological agents Soil is rich in several minerals and different kinds of organic matter. These minerals and organic matter undergoes natural decays and causes soil pollution. Soil is also polluted due to industrial wastes, urban wastes, radioactive pollutants, agricultural practices, etc. In agricultural practices several chemical substances are used as fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, fungicides and rodenticides. All these substances leads to soil pollution. 2. A. Explain the environmental segments. Environment can be divided into four segments. 1) Atmosphere 2) Hydrosphere 3) Lithosphere 4) Biosphere

1) Atmosphere : The blanket of gases present around the earth is called the atmosphere. It absorbs a portion of electromagnetic radiation coming from the sun and transmits near U.V., visible and near infrared radiations. It plays an important role in maintaining the heat balance on earth. The major components in the atmosphere are oxygen and nitrogen, minor components are carbondioxide, water vapour etc. During respiration, all the animals take in oxygen and let out carbondioxide. During photosynthesis, plants utilize carbondioxide and release oxygen. Atmosphere can also supply nitrogen for nitrogen fixing bacteria. 2) Hydrosphere : All the natural water resources together constitute the hydrosphere. These include oceans, seas, rivers, lakes, streams, reservoirs, glaciers, polar ice caps, ground waters, etc Water occupies four fifths of the earths surface. Out of this, 97% is present in the form of ice in polar ice caps and only a small percentage of water is available for drinking, agriculture and other human purposes. Though sea water is not used for drinking, many of the marine animals and plants survive in sea water. The growth and decline of the ancient civilizations are closely linked to the water supply (e.g : Indus valley civilization) www.sakshieducation.com

www.sakshieducation.com 3) Lithosphere : The outer mantle of the solid earth consists of minerals occurring in earth crest and soil. While the inner surface layers of earth contain natural gas and soil. Mountains and hills also come under lithosphere. 4) Biosphere : All living organisms like plants, animals and human beings constitute the biosphere. Biospheres and other segments of the environments are inter related. e.g : The levels of O2 and CO2 depend on the plants present in the biosphere Biosphere is dependent on atmosphere and hydrosphere If water is contaminated with any unwanted substances, it may either cause infectious diseases or may lead to the death of the aquatic animals. Similarly, polluted atmosphere, can arrest the plant growth and can create health hazards among animals and human beings. 3. A. What are air pollutants ? How are they causing air pollution ? The important air pollutants are : i) Carbon monoxide iii) Chlorofluorocarbons (Freons) ii) Oxides of nitrogen and sulphur iv) Hydrocarbons and photochemical smog

v) Dust, particulate matter from automobiles and certain industries Possible hazards of air pollution : 1) Due to the increase in CO2 levels in the atmosphere causing green house effect global warming. Gases which cause global warming are - CH 4 , nitrogen oxides ( NOx ) , O3 , CFC , H 2O, SO2 , etc Effect of global warming : The temperature of earth increases resulting in : i) The melting of ice caps ii) The decrease in ground water iii) The unseasonal rains iv) a great effect on agriculture sector Prevention : By growing trees and forests, stopping the production of CFC etc 2) Due to increase of oxides of nitrogen and sulphur causing acid rains Acid rains : Higher oxides of nitrogen and sulphur react with water to form nitric acid and sulphuric acid. These acid dissolve in rain water and come down to earth as acid rain.

N 2O5 + H 2O 2 HNO3 SO3 + H 2O H 2 SO4

Acid rains are more in industrial areas Effect of acid rain : 1) Due to acid rain, the life time of buildings will considerably reduced. The glossy nature of Taj Mahal is getting affected due to the action of acid rain on marble stones 2) Due to acid rain, the pH of the soil changes affecting its fertility www.sakshieducation.com

www.sakshieducation.com 3) Due to the photochemical reactions taking place in stratosphere, ozone layer is depleted Depletion of the ozone layer : Ozone layer present around the earth in the stratosphere protects the earth from harmful U.V. radiation falling on it. But due to certain chemicals like chlorolfluorocarbons (CFCs), Nitric oxide (NO), Chlorine, etc react with ozone and destroy it. Effects of depletion of ozone layer : 1) It causes skin diseases, skin cancer, cataract cases etc 2) The efficiency of photosynthesis in plants decreased considerably Prevention : To decrease the use of CFCs and search for alternative sources of refrigeration, pains spraying, etc, where CFCs were hither to used extensively Hydrocarbons : Among hydrocarbons, methane is present in large quantities. When organic matter and biomass are degraded, methane gas is produced. The smoke coming out from automobiles contain a mixture of hydrocarbons. Carcinogenic benzopyrene is also released from the emission tubes of diesel engines. All the hydrocarbons are oxidized and converted into free radical which are harmful to the plants and can damage both the cellulose and tissues present in it. Peroxy Acetyl Nitrate (PAN) and Peroxy Benzoyl Nitrate (PBN) are harmful substances, damages the plants and causes irritation to eyes respectively. PBN undergoes photochemical oxidation, mixes with ozone, oxides of nitrogen and forms smog (smoke + fog). It is called photochemical smog, which has oxidizing character and formed during summer when the intensity of solar radiation is high. 4. A. Write a note on water pollution. With an increase in the population, industries and use of pesticides and synthetic fertilizers in agricultural sector, many unwanted substances were released into the water. Due to this, the quality of water decreased sharply. This is called water pollution. The main water pollutants are : 1) Inorganic pollutants : Salts, Cu, Zn, As metals, Cyanides, Fluorides, etc 2) Organic pollutants : Sewage and industrial effluents 3) Sediments and oils 4) Domestic waste 5) Industrial and agricultural waste 6) Fluorides The pollutants get into water from industries, by agricultural operations and domestic sewages. Faecal matter polluting water causes water born diseases like jaundice, cholera, etc. Organic pollutants : i) The production of synthetic organic compounds is increasing year by year. They are plastics, pesticides, detergents, dyes, pharmaceuticals. Their presence in water imparts colour and offensive odour. www.sakshieducation.com

www.sakshieducation.com ii) Industrial wastage coming from sugar, paper and leather industries and domestic wastage, when enter in water undergoes degradation with micro organisms. Thereby, D.O. value of water decreases. It adversely affects the aquatic life. iii) Indiscriminate usage of pesticides resulted in water pollution. The pesticides cause water pollution are DDT, Malathion, Phenyl mercury acetate, etc. The substances mix with water and are consumed by fish. These are eaten by birds and human beings. In human body, they remain unchanged for sometime. It results in high B.P. and increase in irritation levels of human beings. Oil pollution of seas : Oil spilling on seas during oil transport has increased in recent years. Thus, sea water getting polluted. Eutrophication : When organic substances from agriculture and industry thrown into the water resources like ponds and lakes, water become over nutrients. It makes the luxuriant growth of Algae and ultimately lakes become dry. Natural water pollution : It occurs due to soil erosion, deposition of animal waste and fallen leaves. In certain areas of Nalgonda and Prakasam districts of A.P., Fluorides are present in harmful quantities in the ground water. Effect of water pollution : 1) Polluted water is not used for drinking 2) Polluted water leads to contaminated diseases like cholera, jaundice, typhoid and diarrhoea 3) Aquatic life gets destroyed 5 How do the following substances pollute atmosphere (a) CO A. (b) NO (c) SO2

a) CO : 80% of the carbon monoxide released from automobiles. In human beings, oxygen is carried to the different parts of body by haemoglobin. If CO also present in air and is inhaled it decreases the oxygen carrying capacity of haemoglobin, due to the formation of complex compound carboxy haemoglobin.

O2 + Hb Haemoglobin

O2 Hb
Oxyhaemoglobin

O2 Hb + CO CO Hb + O2 Oxyhaemoglobin Carboxyhaemoglobin
Thus, Haemoglobin looses oxygen carrying capacity. 100ppm of CO in air cause headache and fatigue. 750ppm of CO in air can also causes death. b) NO : NO (Nitric oxide) emitted super sonic jet planes and come from the burning of fossil fuels. It reach the stratosphere and react with ozone. Thus, it causes depletion of ozone layer which causes the increase of UV radiation falling on the earth. UV radiation is harmful to human being, plants and animals. Nitric oxide combine with oxygen and ozone to form higher oxides of Nitrogen www.sakshieducation.com

www.sakshieducation.com

NO + O3 NO2 + O2

2 NO2 + 2O2 2 NO3 + O2

NO2 + NO3 N 2O5
These oxides ultimately dissolve in water to form Nitric acid

N 2O5 + H 2O 2 HNO3 HNO3 dissolve in rain water and cause acid rain which is harmful
c) SO2 : Sulphur dioxide is released into the atmosphere during : i) Burning of sulphur

S + O 2 SO2
ii) Roasting of sulphide ores

Cu2 S + 2O2 2CuO + SO2

Pollution of air with SO2 causes i) Respiratory tract diseases in human beings ii) Bleaches the green colour of the leaf apexes in plants to yellow colour and preventing it from photosynthesis iii) Acid rain

SO2 reacts with O2 and H 2O to form sulphuric acid

1 SO2 + O2 SO3 2 SO3 + H 2O H 2 SO4

When H 2 SO4 dissolved in rain water, it leads to acid rain which is quite harmful 6. What happens if fluorides are present in water and how is it detected ? Explain any one defluoridation technique. A. Fluorides : The concentration of fluorides up to 3ppm in drinking water is harmless. When it exceeds 3ppm it cannot be used for drinking. It reacts with calcium present in the body (especially teeth and bones) to form calcium fluorides

Ca + F2 CaF2
By this reaction, the colour of the teeth turns yellow and the bones become weak causing the disease fluorosis Detection of fluorides in water : Fluorides can be detected very easily from the reaction of fluorides with zirconium alizarin S dye. (The mixture of zirconium alizarin S is coloured). www.sakshieducation.com

www.sakshieducation.com Fluoride reacts with zirconium to form zirconium fluoride which is colourless. The colour of the dye becomes weak with the increase in the amount of fluorides. Defluoridation technique, Nalgonda technique : In this method, bleaching power, lime and alum are added in the same order and the water is stored and kept for sometime. The fluoride ions of water gets precipitated as complex calcium aluminium fluoride. This is filtered and pure water is used for drinking. The substances used in the method are harmless and are also cheap. This method is used even now.

www.sakshieducation.com